Current Sun View of the Earth

The current position of the Sun over the Earth is a primary factor determining current radio propagation conditions between points on Earth, because energy from the Sun ionizes the ionosphere. Just as the part of the Earth the Sun is directly over tends to receive the most heat, it also tends to receive the most ionizing energy.

Current Solar High-Noon This is how the Earth would appear through a telescope from the Sun right now if the clouds currently around the Earth were removed. The Sun was directly over the point on Earth that is in the exact center of this image at the time it loaded in your web browser. The current gray-line transition between daylight and darkness extends around the extreme periphery of this globe. (Allow a few seconds for current-position calculations, image creation, and image loading.)